The Debt Page #15

STEPHAN (CONT’D)

(to Rachel)

Are you going to be alright?

Rachel nods.

As she hears the door close, she turns to stare at Vogel.

He’s barely conscious, his face smeared with blood.

161 INT. SAFEHOUSE - BATHROOM. NIGHT. 161

Rachel drenches a cloth under the tap.

162 INT. SAFEHOUSE - LIVING ROOM. MOMENTS LATER 162

Rachel cleans the blood from VOGEL’s face. He has his eyes

closed.

VOGEL:

(Mumbling, in German)

Thank you...

She tears off a new strip of tape and places it over

VOGEL’s mouth, gently.

She notices the rain leaking in through the ceiling and

walks off towards the kitchen. We hold on Vogel, apparently

sleeping. Then his tied hand reaches out, straining and

manages to reach one of the SHARDS of broken bowl.

163 KITCHEN - CONTINUOUS 163

Rachel gathers three METAL SAUCEPANS.

She stops for a moment looking at FIREWORKS flashing in the

sky. She remembers - it’s New Years Eve.

We TRACK with her as she walks into the living room and

begins to place the pots on the floor to catch the

rainwater which is dripping through various points in the

ceiling.

CLOSE ON VOGEL’S HANDS

As he uses the shard to saw through his ropes.

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ON RACHEL:

...as she finishes with the pots and notices the pieces of

shattered bowl scattered around Vogel. She kneels down in

front of him and collects up the pieces. She glances up at

Vogel, checking him. He is still slumped, eyes closed.

We TRACK with her as she walks back into the kitchen. From

the living room comes the three distinct PINGS of rainwater

dripping in the pots.

She drops the pieces of bowl into the bin and stops,

puzzled. It’s a moment before she works out what she’s

noticed - something has changed in the sound of the

rainwater next door. There only two drips instead of three.

She walks back towards the living room...

RACHEL’S P.O.V - through the living room door we can see

that one of the pots has been overturned. Rachel slows to a

stop. A sudden wave of adrenalin causes her to turn

but...it’s too late. Vogel steps out of the alcove he’s

been standing in so that he is directly in front of her.

Before she can even cry out he has slashed her face open

with a SHARD OF GLASS.

Instinctively she cups her hands to her ripped face. Vogel

grabs her by the hair and stepping behind her, tries to

worm his other hand underneath her raised arms to reach her

throat with the glass.

Her training kicking in, Rachel uses a krav magah move to

grab and twist Vogel’s forearm, breaking his hold on her

and turning the arm until, with a yell of pain, Vogel drops

the shard. He swings wildly at her, but Rachel ducks the

fist and drives the palm of her hand up into his face.

Vogel stumbles back, surprised by her speed and the sudden

pain of the blow.

Rachel is about to press home the attack but is blinded by

blood from her wound washing into her eyes.

As she wipes her eyes clear, Vogel grabs a LAMP from a

small chest of drawers in the hall and smashes it into her

face. She falls.

Vogel begins to run, but, driven by adrenaline and

desperation, Rachel scrambles onto all fours and lunges at

him, catching hold of his trouser leg as he moves towards

the front door.

Vogel stumbles, manages to pull a leg free and stamps down

on Rachel who lets go with a moan. He stamps again, steps

free and kicks her hard in the head.

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Rachel rolls with the force of the kick and comes to a

rest, losing consciousness.

RACHEL’S P.O.V - LOW ANGLE - Fluttering in and out of

darkness - Vogel’s feet as he stands beside us, breathing

hard. Then he turns and hurries to the front door...and

out.

164 EXT. WALKWAY. BERLIN SAFE HOUSE - NIGHT. 164

Vogel hurries along the walkway and sets off down the

spiral staircase of the apartment building.

165 INT. HALLWAY - NIGHT. 165

Rachel lies motionless. We wait for her to cough as we saw

her do before. But she doesn’t. She just continues to lie

still.

166 EXT. STAIRCASE - CONTINUOUS 166

Below us Vogel clatters on down the stairs, flight after

flight.

167 INT. HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS 167

No movement from Rachel.

168 EXT. STAIRWELL/COURTYARD - CONTINUOUS 168

Vogel clears the stairs and bursts into the courtyard.

There is a lurid flash of fireworks from nearby and for a

moment we see Vogel lit, as he passes the point where

earlier we saw him drop to the ground.

He reaches the gate and goes through, his shadow

disappearing on the pavement.

He’s gone.

169 INT. BERLIN SAFEHOUSE - LIVING ROOM. NIGHT 169

Rachel holds a blood-soaked tea towel to her cheek, trying

to staunch the flow. David sits, staring ahead, in shock.

Stephan bursts in, out of breath.

STEPHAN:

Nothing. Not a trace. Nothing at

all.

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He hurries to the drawers and takes out the gun, puts it

into his waistband.

STEPHAN (CONT’D)

He might go to the house, might

try and get a message to the

wife...

DAVID:

(Without looking up)

He’s not going back to the house.

He’s gone. Fifteen years, it took

them to find him. And he’s gone.

And no-one’s going to find him

again.

STEPHAN:

So we what? We...are you going to

make the phone call? Are you

going to tell them how he got a

f***ing piece of broken bowl?

Wonderful. But don’t try and take

me down with you. I’ve done

nothing wrong. Remember that!

Stephan kicks at the chair, at the drawers.

STEPHAN (CONT’D)

(muttering tensely)

This can’t happen! This is never

going to go away.

RACHEL:

I take responsibility. It was my

shift.

DAVID:

(Quietly)

This happened because of me. I

let him go. And no-one’s ever

going to find him again.

He closes his eyes, struggling with the enormity of his

guilt.

Stephan drops the gun onto the table, sits down. Outside we

hear more fireworks. Suddenly...

STEPHAN:

No-one’s ever going to find him

again.

Something in his voice causes Rachel to look up at him.

STEPHAN (CONT’D)

(Beat)

What if he didn’t escape?

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RACHEL:

What are you talking about?

STEPHAN:

Only four people know what

happened in this room. Us, and

him. And he’s not talking. No one

will ever hear from him again.

RACHEL:

(Realizing what he

means)

No.

STEPHAN:

Nobody needs to know what

happened here.

RACHEL:

He escaped.

STEPHAN:

That’s the truth. But that

doesn’t have to be the truth we

take home. The truth can be

anything we want it to be. The

truth is Vogel tried to escape,

you struggled with him and got

hurt. The truth is, seconds

before he got away, Rachel got

the gun and shot him. The truth

is we got rid of him.... got rid

of the body... got rid of every

trace of the Surgeon of Birkenau.

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